huò

or

HSK Level 2

Example Sentences

你喜欢吃苹果或香蕉?

nǐ xǐhuān chī píngguǒ huò xiāngjiāo?

Do you like to eat apples or bananas?

你可以选择红色或蓝色。

nǐ kěyǐ xuǎnzé hóngsè huò lánsè.

You can choose red or blue.

他可能会来,也可能不会来。

tā kěnéng huì lái, yě kěnéng bù huì lái.

He might come, or he might not.

Synonyms

或者 (huòzhě)

or

或许 (huòxǔ)

perhaps

Antonyms

并且 (bìngqiě)

and

而且 (érqiě)

moreover

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Etymology & Components

The Chinese character 或 (huò) is composed of two parts: the radical 曰 (yuē), which means "to speak," and the phonetic component 戈 (gē), which is a weapon. The original meaning of 或 was "to speak with a weapon," which later evolved to mean "to threaten" or "to intimidate." In modern Chinese, 或 is used as a conjunction meaning "or" or "either."The character 或 has a long history, dating back to the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC). It is one of the most common characters in the Chinese language, and it is used in a wide variety of contexts. For example, 或 can be used to connect two nouns, as in the phrase 或男或女 (húo nán huò nǚ), which means "either a man or a woman." It can also be used to connect two verbs, as in the phrase 或走或跑 (húo zǒu huò pǎo), which means "either walk or run."In addition to its use as a conjunction, 或 can also be used as a pronoun, meaning "someone" or "anyone." For example, the phrase 或人 (húo rén) means "someone." 或 can also be used as an adverb, meaning "perhaps" or "maybe." For example, the phrase 或許 (húo xǔ) means "perhaps."The character 或 is a versatile and important character in the Chinese language. It is used in a wide variety of contexts, and it has a rich history.